Registering for Classes

Each year, in November and April, registration is held for the upcoming semesters. Students register via STInet after receiving clearance to register from their academic advisor. Registration times and courses are scheduled in a way that students are able to get the classes they need each semester.

Prerequisite/Corequisite Courses

The satisfactory completion of a prerequisite course, as defined by the curriculum sheet, or departmental approval, is required before the course with the prerequisite may be taken. Satisfactory completion may vary from course to course and among departments. A student auditing a prerequisite course must receive a “Pass” grade and departmental approval before the course with the prerequisite may be taken. An audit grade cannot be used toward graduation requirements. Corequisite courses must be taken at the same time unless approval is obtained from the department.

Schedule Changes – Course Adds/Drops/Withdraws

Courses are not dropped by discontinuing attendance. A drop or termination is not considered official until it has been processed through the Registrar’s Office. Students who discontinue a course without dropping the course online or completing the proper paperwork will still be considered enrolled in the course and will receive failing (“F”) grades for these courses.

Courses dropped after the drop period has expired are not eligible for a refund, unless the student is terminating enrollment (see the Tuition Refunds – Terminating Enrollment section for more information).

The drop period applies to all courses within the semester, even courses which begin mid-semester.

Fall and Spring Semesters

The first five days of the Fall and Spring semesters mark the semester add period. Courses may be added after the first five days of the semester only with the permission of the instructors.

The first ten days of the Fall and Spring semesters mark the semester drop period. Students may drop courses online through the first 5 days of the semester on stinet.southeasttech.edu. After the first 5 days, students must complete a drop form and submit it to the Student Success Center. During the drop period students who continue their enrollment will receive a 100% refund for all dropped courses. Students terminating their enrollment will receive a refund based on the Tuition Refund Process (see Tuition Refunds-Terminating Enrollment).

Students may withdraw from a course and receive a grade of “W” (withdraw) without affecting their grade point average up until the last four weeks of the semester (last two weeks for courses running for 8 weeks).

Late Start Courses (All Semesters)

Students who do not drop late start classes (traditional, hybrid or online) during the drop period of any semester will be required to pay for these courses. Late start courses are any courses with a start date after the semester’s drop period.

Summer Semesters

Summer I session generally runs the month of May.

Summer II session generally runs from early May to the end of July.

Summer III session generally runs from early June to the end of July.

Courses dropped during the first two days of the Summer I session (add/drop period) will not appear on the student’s transcript. Students may withdraw from a Summer I class and receive a grade of “W” through the ninth day of the class. No withdrawal from a Session I class is permitted after the ninth day of the class.

Courses dropped during the first five days (add/drop period) of the Summer II and Summer III semesters will not appear on the student’s transcript. After the first five days and prior to the last two weeks of the Summer II and Summer III sessions, students may withdraw from a course and receive a grade of “W” (withdraw) without affecting their grade point average. No withdraw will be permitted during the last two weeks of the Summer II and Summer III sessions.

Note: For information on add/drop/withdraw and refunds for courses that do not follow the above Summer Session dates, please visit the Student Success Office.

Student Withdrawal – Terminating Enrollment

Students planning to withdraw completely from Southeast Tech either temporarily or permanently are required to complete a “Student Termination Form.” Refunds are based on the Tuition Refund Process (following section). A student who terminates enrollment will automatically be dropped from all pre-registered courses for the following semester.

Students wishing to re-enroll at a later date are required to complete a new application for admission.

Tuition Refunds – Terminating Enrollment

Southeast Tech realizes that students may find it necessary to terminate their education prior to the end of a given academic term. The institution is required to establish a fair and equitable refund process. Regardless of whether or not a student is receiving financial aid, Southeast Tech follows the financial aid refund schedule (see Calculation of Refunds & Earned Financial Aid).

The following applies to all students who completely withdraw from Southeast Tech. The process is effective for all terms including summer school, late start, and evening courses, and applies whether a student is a full-time student or a part-time student.

Students must complete a termination form and submit it to the Student Success Center in order to terminate enrollment. The date the form is received by the Registrar’s Office will be regarded as the student’s last day of attendance.

Students completely withdrawing from all coursework during the add period will receive a 100% refund on tuition and fees, with the exclusion of some certification or testing fees.

Students completely withdrawing from all coursework after the add period has expired will have refunds of tuition and fees calculated based on the date the termination form was received in the Registrar’s Office. See the Business Office in the HUB for a refund schedule. (See the Calculation of Refunds and Earned Financial Aid section for more information.)

Note: Terminating students who have received earned grades (A, B, C, D, F or P) for any courses during the semester, and courses students have withdrawn from prior to terminating enrollment, are not eligible for a refund for these courses.

If the proper termination paperwork is not completed, the student is still responsible for full payment of the course and all courses will be graded accordingly. Students completing and submitting the proper termination paperwork in the time frame indicated in the “Schedule Changes - Course Adds/Drops/Withdraws” section will receive withdrawal grades (“W”) for all courses for the semester. Letter grades will be issued for all course withdrawals outside the time frame in the “Schedule Changes - Course Adds/Drops/Withdraws” section.

Unofficial Withdraws

Students who:

left Southeast Tech without completing the required termination paperwork, and

ended class attendance prior to the 60% mark of the semester for each course, and

received no earned grades (passing or failing)

are generally considered unofficial withdraws.

Unofficial withdraws will receive failing grades for all their coursework and their withdrawal date will be considered the midpoint of the semester. A 50% Return of Title IV funds will be calculated for unofficial withdraw students who received financial aid for that semester. These funds will be sent back to the Department of Education. No other return of funds are provided for unofficial withdraws, either to the student or other agencies.

Please note: When an unofficial withdraw is applied, Southeast Tech has the right to bill the student for the federal funds that are sent back to the Department of Education. Also note that students who receive at least one A, B, C, D, P, I or earned F grade in a given semester will not be considered an unofficial withdraw for that semester.

Re-entry of Withdrawn Students

Students who have withdrawn from enrollment in a Southeast Tech program and would like to be reinstated as a student are required to submit an Application for Admission form.

The student’s Southeast Tech academic record and financial standing with the institute will be reviewed prior to acceptance. Students who were previously suspended from a program, did not show satisfactory progress in a program, violated Southeast Tech policies or state or federal laws, or have an outstanding financial obligation to the institute may be denied acceptance or be required to take additional coursework before or after program acceptance. Re-entry students are subject to being placed on a waiting list if their chosen program is full.

Calculation of Refunds & Earned Financial Aid

Military Service – Withdrawal Without Penalty

Students required to withdraw from Southeast Tech before completing a semester may receive credit and refund privileges if the following conditions are met:

The individual is a regularly enrolled student

He/she belongs to a military unit called for duty, or is drafted (not eligible for deferment).

Deployment activation paperwork must be provided to the Registrar.

Class attendance will continue until the last practical day before reporting for duty as determined by Southeast Technical Institute.

An eligible student who is required to report for military duty not earlier than four calendar weeks prior to the date a semester ends, or after completion of at least 75 percent of an extension enrollment, will be given full credit for all courses or lessons of which he/she has an average of “C” or better. An eligible student who receives credit for any course for which he/she is enrolled will not be entitled to any refund of tuition or fees paid for the privilege of pursuing such course. An eligible student who does not receive credit for a course or lesson in which he/she is enrolled will be entitled to a full refund of tuition and academic fees.

Students who have applied and been accepted to Southeast Tech but are unable to attend Southeast Tech due to military service are required to submit a new application for admission for the following year and will be placed in the program or at the top of any wait list.

Transferring Credits and Accuplacer Scores to Other Schools

Students who wish to transfer credits to another institution should contact the Admissions Office of that school for an evaluation of their Southeast Tech transcript.

Southeast Tech courses are designed to prepare students to enter the work force. Acceptance of these courses for credit at other post-secondary institutions is strictly the function of the receiving institution. Southeast Tech does not guarantee the transfer of credits earned to other post-secondary institutions. Students who wish to transfer credits to a South Dakota public university should contact the Admissions Office of the desired university for an evaluation of their program objectives and technical institute transcript. An individual evaluation of course credits will be made by the receiving public university in accordance with institutional and Board of Regents policy.

Southeast Tech students who wish to transfer their ACCUPLACER test scores to another institution should contact the Southeast Tech Testing Center at 605.367.6014.

Note: Students who wish to take the ACCUPLACER for purposes of attending another school will be assessed a $35 fee (fee subject to change).

Auditing

Students may enroll on an audit basis in any course except as stated below. Standard tuition and fees apply. The student’s transcript will identify such courses as being audit courses (AU) with no credit awarded. Students must inform the instructor during the first two weeks of class when auditing a course. Audit status is not available in classes involving clinical assignments or laboratories where waiting lists are established. Audited courses do not count toward graduation requirements and do not meet pre-requisite course requirements.

A student who has previously completed a course successfully but chooses to take the course again as an audit will be required to pay the required tuition fee only. Enrollment in the course is subject to room availability. Students taking the course for a letter grade will receive first priority.

In some situations, Southeast Tech instructors and administration may require a student to audit a class the student successfully completed in the past. This generally occurs when students have discontinued their education for a period of time and need to brush up their skill levels. Financial aid is NOT available for audited classes. Tuition and fee charges may apply.

Full-Time Students

A full-time student is someone registered for 12 or more credits during a sixteen-week semester. For summer session, a student must be enrolled in 9 or more credits. Southeast Tech recommends that students do not exceed 21 credits for a given semester.

Students wanting to take 22 or more credits within a semester must receive approval from an academic administrator.

Full-time credit requirements may vary for students receiving funding from other sources due to each agency’s established policies.

Part-Time Students

A part-time student is one who is enrolled in less than 12 credits during a sixteen week semester or fewer than nine credits during the summer session. Part-time students seeking a diploma or degree should meet with their Academic advisor for registration. Part-time students wishing to attend classes, but not seeking a diploma or degree, must complete a “Limited Course(s) Registration Form” which is available in the Admissions and Student Success Offices.